Five structures were destroyed in a fire along the Okanagan Lake shoreline Friday afternoon.
The blaze, which resulted in no injures, broke out around around 4 p.m. Friday (June 4) off Westside Road. The Okanagan Indian Band (OKIB) Fire Department contained the scene with multiple engines, at times using lake water to douse the blaze.
The fire was located at the end of Smith Crescent off Westside, near Komasket Beach. Winds were sweeping across the lake throughout the day and into the evening.
“When we arrived they were fully involved already,” OKIB Fire Chief David Lawrence of the three cabins and two 35-foot trailers, all of which were complete losses.
Upon arrival, firefighters set up to prevent the fire from advancing north, said Lawrence.
“We brought our standalone pump and dropped it into the lake,” he said. “We can feed both of our fire trucks with that one pump.”
Friday’s fire was the third structure fire in as many days in the North Okanagan after a devastating lumberyard blaze June 3 in Spallumcheen and a garage fire that took place June 2 near Predator Ridge. Investigations into the causes of all three fires remains ongoing.
Vernon’s temperature peaked at 4 p.m., around the time the fire broke out, according to Environment Canada.
Bans on open fires and fireworks will soon come into effect in the Kamloops Fire Centre.
On Friday the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development announced the ban will come into effect on June 11, and it’s intended to prevent human-caused wildfires and protect public safety.
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